During a more recent visit, I got to hike in the other direction, down to sea level. Our destination was the Short Sands Beach, which can be reached via a short hike through primitive forest along the Short Sands and Necarney Creeks.
The beach is sheltered between two prominent headlands, Neahkahnie Mountain to the south, and Cape Falcon to the north. It is famous for small waves, friendly to boogie boarders and beginning surfers, alike. True to Oregon-style, I even saw an outdoor preschool at this family-friendly beach.
During low-tide, tide pools form along the rocky borders of the beach. And, Blumenthal Falls, on the cape side, offers some pint-sized scrambling over mossy rock. At high tide, the ocean rises up past the waterfall.
I made this recent visit with a half-pint of the four-legged variety. She was rather less interested in the tide pool ecosystem and digging up sand crabs. The majority of her attention was on her fellow compatriots that were off-leash. She was so jealous of their freedom to play at full speed that she forgot about her leash and made a run for it a couple times. The result was some gloriously awkward tumbles.
Get out and play hard!
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